Tokelau issues three coins for queen’s Platinum Jubilee

By Jeff Starck , Coin World

Published: Apr 19, 2022, 9 AM

A trio of limited mintage Proof coins are being issued by Tokelau to commemorate the Platinum Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth

All images courtesy of Talisman Coins.

Queen Elizabeth II on Feb. 6 began her eighth decade as queen, the first British monarch ever to reach that milestone.

Her Platinum Jubilee, the 70th anniversary of her enthronement, is cause for a year-long celebration throughout the United Kingdom, the British Commonwealth, and indeed around the world.

That celebration extends to coins, and includes three 2022 Proof coins from Tokelau.

The program features a 1-ounce .999 fine silver $5 coin, a 5-ounce .999 fine silver $10 coin and a 1-ounce .9999 fine gold $100 coin.

A queen’s life

Elizabeth, born in 1926, is the oldest monarch in British history, surpassing Queen Victoria’s 81 years by almost a decade and a half. Elizabeth is also the longest reigning monarch in British history, having passed Queen Victoria’s length of reign in 2015. She is also the longest reigning queen in recorded history.

Princess Elizabeth was born April 21, 1926. At just 10 years old, she unexpectedly became heir presumptive to the throne when her father, Bertie, became King George VI upon his older brother Edward VIII’s abdication.

Almost immediately, the young Elizabeth began to prepare for her future role; her official duties grew steadily throughout her teens. When George VI’s health began to deteriorate in 1951, the young princess readily assumed many of her father’s responsibilities.

George VI died suddenly in his sleep on Feb. 6, 1952, when Elizabeth was on an official state visit to Kenya, then a British colony.

She immediately acceded to the throne, becoming the first British monarch in over 200 years to do so while abroad. The new Queen Elizabeth went into her official period of mourning, then was crowned at Westminster Abbey at the relatively young age of 26 on June 2, 1953.

By this time she was a seasoned public figure, her years of service a strong indicator of what the Commonwealth could expect of its new queen. Today about 128 million people live in the 16 countries of which she is head of state.

Coin designs

Both the 1-ounce coins share a similar design, with the only difference being the denomination indications. However, the gold coin features a real sapphire added, embedded into the design.

The Ian Rank Broadley effigy of Queen Elizabeth II appears on the obverse of all three coins.

The similar reverse designs for the 1-ounce coins feature a portrait of the queen wearing the diamond diadem that she wore in 1952 for the opening of Parliament, and sporting a sapphire necklace.

Above Queen Elizabeth II’s effigy rests the imperial state crown (set with the Cullinan II diamond), the ultimate symbol of her power and authority. Interspersed along the coins’ rims are other symbols of her regal power: the scepter with cross, made in 1661 and set with the Great Star of Africa diamond, the Cullinan I, second largest cut diamond in the world; the sovereign’s orb or globus cruciger, carried in always the monarch’s left hand; and two heralds on horseback representing Elizabeth’s Silver Jubilee (in 1977) and Golden Jubilee (in 2002).

Each element around the edge is separated by royal scepters and royal swords.

Included also along the rim are the national flowers (floral badges) of the four constituents of the United Kingdom, over which Elizabeth reigns — the Tudor rose (representing England), thistle (Scotland), leek (Wales) and shamrock (Northern Ireland).

Those floral badges of the four constituents of the United Kingdom are also featured prominently in the reverse design for the 5-ounce coin, which shows Elizabeth’s royal cypher in the center, surmounted by a realistically detailed image of the imperial state crown, inset with a genuine diamond gemstone, which represents the famed Cullinan II diamond, the third largest cut diamond in the world.

At the other three quadrants are coats of arms of three of the nations of the United Kingdom, three lions passant guardant of England, the lion rampant of Scotland, and the harp of Ireland.